Introduced by the British government in 2007, via the Children's Workforce Development Council, EYPS courses require a degree, and include an assessment in an early years setting – either a placement or within the trainee's own early years workplace.
The numbers of people undertaking training is falling each year[citation needed].
There is little financial or business incentive (beyond the training fees paid, and funds paid to settings) for anyone to undertake the qualification due to the limited government funding of Early Years[citation needed].
[2] In Scotland, since 2011, it is a registration requirement with SSSC (Scottish Social Service Council) that all leaders and managers who are in charge of EY centres, nurseries or family centres must have a Level 9 qualification ( SCQF) which is equivalent to an ordinary degree.
Pay within the Early Years sector is however is often only half that of a Newly Qualified Teacher, often paid little more than minimum wage.